Oil slips to near $104 after US crude supply jump

Oil prices fell to near $104 a barrel Wednesday after a report showed U.S. crude supplies rose more than expected last week, suggesting rising fuel costs may be crimping demand. By early afternoon in Europe, benchmark crude for May delivery was down 47 cents to $104.32 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

EIA: Crude oil stockpiles added 2.9 million barrels in US last week

Crude oil prices were lower Wednesday after the US Energy Information Administration reported a gain in US stockpiles last week.

WTI oil trading firm over $104 amid higher US inventories

WTI oil futures open today’s trading session firm over $104 a barrel as the latest EIA data showed that US crude oil inventories rose higher than many analysts had forecast, while the US President called for more oil production at home. Latest WTI Oil Price US Light crude oil futures for May 2011 delivery was trading at $104.68 a barrel, 05.55 GMT this morning in electronic trading on the NYMEX.

Brent crude oil hangs near $115 in thin trading volumes

Brent crude oil futures open Thursday’s trading session hanging near $115 a barrel while investors watch oil prices from the sidelines as trading volumes slip to their lowest levels of the year. Latest Brent Oil Price In London, Brent crude oil futures for May 2011 delivery was trading at $115.47 a barrel, 06.15 GMT on the ICE Futures Exchange. The contract closed yesterday’s session at $115.10.

Oil near $105 as Gadhafi takes back Libya oil port

SINGAPORE – Oil prices rose to near $105 a barrel Thursday in Asia after control of a key oil port swung back to forces loyal to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, dimming hopes of a quick rebel victory and a restart of crude exports. Benchmark crude for May delivery was up 37 cents to $104.64 a barrel at midday Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell 52 cents to settle at $104.27 on Wednesday

CARBO Schedules Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2011 Earnings

HOUSTON, Dec. 27, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- CARBO Ceramics Inc. (NYSE: CRR) announced that it plans to release earnings results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year 2011 on January 26, 2012, and will host a conference call at 10:00 a.m. Central Time (11:00 a.m. Eastern) that day. Gary Kolstad, President and CEO, and Ernesto Bautista, III, Vice President and CFO, will host the call.

To participate in the teleconference, investors in the U.S. should dial 1-877-883-0383 at least 10 minutes before the start time and reference conference number 2305150.   Canada-based callers should dial 1-877-885-0477, and international callers outside of North America should dial 1-412-902-6506. The conference call also can be accessed by visiting the company's website, www.carboceramics.com.

A replay of the earnings conference call will be available through February 1, 2012, at 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time, on the company's website one hour after the end of the conference. To access the replay from the U.S. please dial 1-877-344-7529; outside the U.S. please dial 1-412-317-0088. Please reference conference number 10008048. The MP3 audio file of the earnings conference call will be available on the company's website approximately two hours after the end of the call.

CARBO is the world's largest supplier of ceramic proppant for fracturing oil and gas wells; provider of the world's most popular fracture simulation software; and a provider of fracture design and consulting services. The Company also provides a broad range of technologies for spill prevention, containment and countermeasures, along with geotechnical monitoring.

The statements in this news release that are not historical statements, including statements regarding our future financial and operating performance, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws.  All forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations and estimates, which involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in forward-looking statements.  Among these factors are changes in overall economic conditions, changes in demand for our products, changes in the demand for, or price of, oil and natural gas, risks of increased competition, technological, manufacturing and product development risks, loss of key customers, changes in government regulations, foreign and domestic political and legislative risks, the risks of war and international and domestic terrorism, risks associated with foreign operations and foreign currency exchange rates and controls; weather-related risks and other risks and uncertainties described in our publicly available filings with the SEC.  We assume no obligation to update forward-looking statements, except as required by law.

 

Stone Energy Corporation Announces Close of Acquisition of BP's Pompano Field Working Interest

LAFAYETTE, La., Dec. 28, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Stone Energy Corporation (NYSE: SGY) today announced the closing of the previously announced acquisition of deep water assets from BP Exploration & Production Inc. (BP), which include BP's 75% operated working interest in the five block deep water Pompano field in Mississippi Canyon, a 51% operated working interest in the adjacent Mississippi Canyon block 29, a 50% non-operated working interest in the Mica field, which ties back to the Pompano platform, and interests in 23 deep water exploration leases located in the vicinity of the Pompano field.  The stated purchase price of $204 million was adjusted under the agreement to $167.6 million, after adjusting for the effective date of July 1, 2011. The final purchase price is subject to further adjustments for the subsequent period through the closing date. The acquisition was funded from cash on hand and $45 million in borrowings under Stone's revolving bank credit facility. Following the completion of the closing onDecember 28, 2011, Stone had $45.0 million in bank borrowings and $61.1 million in letters of credit outstanding under its bank credit facility, with availability of $293.9 million under its bank credit facility.

Stone's preliminary review of the estimated proved reserves relating to the acquired properties indicated estimated proved reserves of approximately 17 million barrels of oil equivalent (Boe) as of December 28, 2011, which were approximately 83% oil. Stone's preliminary estimate of the asset retirement obligation associated with the properties is approximately $60 million. The Pompano platform is a production hub with seven producing leases, currently producing at an average rate of approximately 3,300 Boe per day, net to Stone. The production hub has production capacity of 60,000 barrels of oil per day and 135 million cubic feet of gas per day, which could allow for potential processing of additional third party production.

Growing Aiken Group In New Wave Of Recruitment

Ongoing growth has resulted in a wave of appointments at Aberdeen-based Aiken Group.

Aiken Group is a leading multi-discipline company specialising in accommodation upgrades, refurbishments and new-builds worldwide.  The company employs 56 staff at its Aberdeen headquarters, plus more than 100 contractors worldwide.

The company recently announced that turnover has doubled in the last three years to £12 million.

Lee Reid has been appointed to the role of electrical and instrumentation engineer whilst Robert Soutar becomes CAD draughtsman and Tina Carle recruited as a trainee project engineer.  In addition, Tracy Anderson has been taken on as onshore facilities manager.

Commenting on the recent appointments, Aiken Group managing director Danny Donald said: “These four new members of staff have been employed as part of our ongoing recruitment drive which is likely to bring further new faces to the company in the near future.

“The need for these new positions has been brought about by increased demand for our services, and our desire to enhance our service provision.”

Aiken Group is headquartered at Crombie House, 72-90 Crombie Road, Aberdeen, AB11 9QP.  For further information visit www.aikengroup.com or call (01224) 244300.

Source: Aiken Group

Aker Solutions Announces Drilling in Houston

International oil services group Aker Solutions is about to open North America's most advanced drilling equipment simulator in Houston, Texas. The simulator will be available to rig operators with the objective of making offshore drilling operations safer and more cost effective.

Aker Solutions is investing USD 2.5 million in the new state-of-the-art drilling equipment simulator, which will be available 24/7 for North American based rig operators and oil companies. It will double the capacity of the current training centre located in Katy near Houston. The new drilling simulator is expected to be officially opened early 2012.

"This will be the most advanced drilling simulator in North America and we will double our training capacity when it is ready for use. It will have dedicated staff who can provide round-the-clock service on Aker Solutions' complete range of topside drilling equipment. We look forward to start working with our customers in this new and upgraded centre," says Glenn Ellis, head of drilling technologies for Aker Solutions in the US.

Aker Solutions is one of the world's top providers of drilling equipment packages and technologies for deepwater drilling operations. Using advanced 3D visualisation technology, the company has developed the market leading drilling simulators, which are already in operation in Brazil, Singapore, Norway and South Korea, in addition to Houston. A new simulator is also being prepared in Baku, Azerbaijan.

The centrepiece of the 9,800 square foot training centre is a new 240 degree domed simulator. Its dome-shaped screen, combined with utilization of actual drilling control systems software, creates a realistic environment that emulates what is experienced on a rig. Each specific rig is meticulously recreated as a virtual asset, including all rig equipment and control systems. This offers the possibility of onshore training and detailed operational planning, with the same signal treatment, in virtual environments that are identical to those that will be experienced offshore.

The training centre's extensive server systems are made up of 88 individual servers, which provide enough capacity to run simulations on two drilling rigs simulator systems simultaneously. A manual switchover solution allows quick change of the rig configuration in the simulator to ensure maximum simulator utilisation.  

"A realistic, real-time visualisation of drilling operations enables rig operators to learn to make better and faster decisions. The result is safer operations, more efficient drilling and increased rig uptime. This simulator technology certainly allows us to offer superior training facilities for our clients and our own employees," adds Glenn Ellis.

Athabasca Oil Sands Corp. Announces Approval of MacKay River Commercial Oil Sands Project

CALGARY, Dec. 28, 2011 /CNW/ - Athabasca Oil Sands Corp. (TSX:  ATH) is pleased to announce that MacKay Operating Corp. (MacKay Opco) has received full regulatory approval from Alberta Energy Resources Conservation Board and Alberta Environment and Water for the MacKay River commercial oil sands project.

Sveinung Svarte, president and CEO says, "To obtain approval in just over 24-months is an achievement and Athabasca is very pleased with the regulatory process. The company filed the application on December 10, 2009 and MacKay Opco received the final approval on December 23, 2011. To achieve this major milestone, MacKay Opco's Regulatory and Stakeholder Affairs team effectively dealt with all stakeholders to resolve their concerns and get this commercial oil sands project endorsed by the regulators and the Alberta government."

The MacKay River project is a 150,000 barrels per day (bbl/d) steam assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) project with Phase 1 expected to produce 35,000 bbl/d of oil.  Construction of the project will begin next month with start-up targeted for 2014.

MacKay Opco is a Calgary-based joint venture between Athabasca (40%) and Cretaceous Oilsands Holdings Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of PetroChina (60%). The company was formed to operate the jointly owned MacKay River oil sands leases.

Athabasca is a dynamic company focused on development of oil resource plays in Alberta, Canada. It has accumulated a large, high quality resource base suitable for extraction of extra heavy crude oil (bitumen) and light oil. The company is well financed and, with its excellent assets and talented people, Athabasca is poised to become a major Canadian oil producer. It is traded on the TSX under the symbol ATH.